Vehicle-pedal backward-displacement preventing device

ABSTRACT

A vehicle-pedal backward-displacement preventing device. A pedal bracket has side plates each including a front end at which the pedal bracket is attached to the dash pane. A bulge protrudes in a protruding direction away from the other of the side plates. An operating pedal having a depressible portion is provided by its lower end portion. A guide member is associated with an upper end portion of the pedal bracket and a vehicle body member. The guide member causes the upper end portion of the pedal bracket to be downwardly displaced, upon displacement of the pedal bracket, whereby the pedal bracket is deformed with the side plates being made to buckle, so as to restrain the displacement of the depressible portion of the operating pedal toward a driver&#39;s seat. Each side plate has an aperture located in its region which includes a crest portion of the bulge, such that a strength of each side plate against a load is reduced most in the crest portion. Each side plate therefore can be made to buckle with the crest portion being displaced in the protruding direction.

TECHNICAL FIELD OF INVENTION

The present invention relates to a vehicle-pedal backward-displacementpreventing device for preventing a depressible portion of an operatingpedal from being backwardly displaced toward a driver's seat in theevent of displacement of a dash panel toward the driver's seat.

BACKGROUND ART

There is proposed a vehicle-pedal backward-displacement preventingdevice having: (a) a pedal bracket provided with a pair of side plateseach including a front end at which the pedal bracket is fixedlyattached to a dash panel; (b) an operating pedal disposed pivotablyabout an axis of a support shaft connecting the pair of side plates, andhaving in its lower end portion a depressible portion which is to bedepressed whereby the operating pedal is operated; (c) a guide memberdisposed in relation to an upper end portion of the pedal bracket and avehicle body member, and restraining the depressible portion of theoperating pedal from being backwardly displaced toward a driver's seat,upon backward displacement of the pedal bracket together with the dashpanel toward the driver's seat. The guide member causes the upper endportion of the pedal bracket to be downwardly displaced following apredetermined displacement path, as a result of displacement of thepedal bracket relative to the vehicle body member, whereby the pedalbracket is deformed to be bent with the pair of side plates being madeto buckle, so as to restrain the backward displacement of thedepressible portion of the operating pedal toward the driver's seat.

As an example of the above-described device, Patent Document 1 disclosesa brake-pedal backward-displacement preventing device in which the pedalbracket is connected at its upper end portion with the guide member(slide plate) that is fixed to an instrument panel reinforcement memberas the vehicle body member. In the event of displacement of the dashpanel toward the driver's seat which displacement is caused, forexample, with an impact of a large load to the dash panel in a directionfrom the vehicle front to the rear, the pedal bracket is disconnectedfrom the guide member, and the upper end portion of the disconnectedpedal bracket is guided by the guide member so as to be downwardlydisplaced. As a result of the downward displacement of the upper endportion of the pedal bracket, the pedal bracket is made to buckle. Inthis instance, the pedal bracket is deformed to be bent at its portionin which an aperture is formed for reducing a rigidity of the pedalbracket, whereby the brake pedal as the operating pedal is pivoted abouta fulcrum provided by its connected portion at which the brake pedal isconnected to an operating rod. The brake pedal is thus pivoted about itsconnected portion as the fulcrum such that its depressible portion isrelatively displaced toward the front of the vehicle. Patent Document 2also discloses a pedal backward-displacement preventing device havingsubstantially the same construction as the device disclosed in thePatent Document 1.

[Patent Document 1] JP-A-H10-175492

[Patent Document 2] JP-A-H9-254821

DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION OBJECT TO BE ACHIEVED BY INVENTION

There is a case where each of the pair of side plates of the pedalbracket is designed to have a bulge which protrudes to be curvedoutwardly, for example, for avoiding interference of the side plate witha brake booster. However, when the thus designed pedal bracket isdeformed to be bent, a boundary portion (bent portion) of the bulgecould be inwardly displaced by a load exerted by the above-describedguide member, depending upon position and shape of the aperture.

A pedal bracket 100 of FIGS. 3 (a) and 3 (b) includes a back plate 106and a pair of side plates 102, 104 which are connected to each otherthrough the back plate 106. Thus, the pedal bracket 100 has a U-shapedcross sectional shape as a whole. The side plates 102, 104 have, intheir lower portions, respective bulges 102 a, 104 a which protrude tobe curved outwardly, so as not to interfere with a brake booster. Thepedal bracket 100 is fixedly attached at front ends of the respectivebulges 102 a, 104 a (at left ends of the respective bulges 102 a, 104 aas seen FIG. 3 (a)), to a dash panel 108. A support shaft 110 isprovided to connect upper portions of the side plates 102, 104, so thatan operating pedal (not shown) can be pivotably attached to the supportshaft 110. An aperture 112 is formed in the vicinity of each of thebulges 102 a, 104 a, for reducing weight of the pedal bracket 100. Ineach of upper boundary portions 102 b, 104 b of the respective bulges102 a, 104 a, there is located a weakest portion Q in which a strengthagainst a load F exerted by a guide member (not shown) upon backwarddisplacement of the dash panel 108 (upon rightward displacement of thedash panel 108 as seen FIG. 3 (b)), is reduced most. Since the upperboundary portions 102 b, 104 b of the bulges 102 a, 104 a are bent to berelatively convexed inwardly, the portions 102 b, 104 b are displacedinwardly as indicated by broken lines in FIG. 3 (b), when the pedalbracket 100 is made to buckle with an impact of the compressive load Fthereto. Even where the aperture 112 is located in a region of each ofthe side plates 102, 104 which region includes a crest portion of thebulge 102 a, 104 a, the strength against the above-described load F isreduced in the upper boundary portions 102 b, 104 b, as long as theaperture 112 having, for example, an oval shape lies across the upperboundary portion 102 b, 104 b. If the aperture 112 were formed withineach of the bulges 102 a, 104 a so as not to lie across the upperboundary portion 102 b, 104 b, the thus formed aperture 112 could notcontribute to sufficiently reduce the weight of the pedal bracket 100.It is noted that FIG. 3 (a) is a longitudinal cross sectional view ofthe pedal bracket 100, showing the right side plate 104 as seen from aninside of the pedal bracket 100, while FIG. 3 (b) is a front view of thepedal bracket 100.

If each of the side plates has a portion which is inwardly displacedupon buckling of the pedal bracket, there is a possibility that thedevice becomes incapable of sufficiently restraining backwarddisplacement of the depressible portion of the operating pedal towardthe driver's seat. This is because the inwardly displaced portion of theside plate could interfere with the brake booster or other object,whereby the bending deformation of the pedal bracket could be impeded.

The present invention was made under the above-described background withobject of enabling the pedal bracket to appropriately buckle such thateach of the side plates to be deformed in its outward direction, so asto further reliably provide the effect of restraining backwarddisplacement of the operating pedal.

MEASUREMENT FOR ACHIEVING OBJECT

For achieving the above object, the first invention is, in avehicle-pedal backward-displacement preventing device having (a) a pedalbracket provided with a pair of side plates each including a front endat which the pedal bracket is fixedly attached to a dash panel, and abulge which protrudes to be curved outwardly, (b) an operating pedaldisposed pivotably about an axis of a support shaft connecting the pairof side plates, and having a depressible portion which is provided byits lower end portion and which is to be depressed whereby the operatingpedal is operated, and (c) a guide member disposed in relation to anupper end portion of the pedal bracket and a vehicle body member, andrestraining the depressible portion of the operating pedal from beingbackwardly displaced toward a driver's seat, upon backward displacementof the pedal bracket together with the dash panel toward the driver'sseat, the guide member causing the upper end portion of the pedalbracket to be downwardly displaced following a predetermineddisplacement path, as a result of displacement of the pedal bracketrelative to the vehicle body member, whereby the pedal bracket isdeformed to be bent with the pair of side plates being made to buckle,so as to restrain the backward displacement of the depressible portionof the operating pedal toward the driver's seat, characterized in that(d) each of the side plates has an aperture located in a region thereofwhich includes a crest portion of the bulge, such that a strength ofeach of the side plates against a load, which is exerted by the guidemember upon the backward displacement of the dash panel, is weakenedmost in the crest portion, so that each of the side plates can be madeto buckle with the crest portion of the bulge being made to protrudeoutwardly.

It is preferable that the depressible portion of the operating pedal isrestrained from being backwardly displaced in the event of deformationof the dash panel, so as to be positioned in a position which issubstantially the same as an original position of the depressibleportion or which is located on the front side of the original positionof the depressible portion. However, the depressible portion may bebackwardly displaced toward the driver's seat (toward the rear of thevehicle), as long as an amount of the backward displacement of thedepressible portion toward the driver's seat is reduced as a result ofapplication of the present invention.

The second invention is, in the vehicle-pedal backward-displacementpreventing device of the first invention, characterized in that (a) theoperating pedal is a brake pedal connected to an operating rod of abrake booster which is disposed on the dash panel, (b) the side platesare disposed on respective right and left sides of the brake booster andextend upwardly, the bulges are provided in lower portions of therespective side plates and protrude in respective rightward and leftwarddirections along an outer periphery of the brake booster, for preventinginterference of the side plates with the brake booster, each of thebulges has a front end which is attached to the dash panel, each of thebulges has a rear end which is rearwardly inclined with respect to thedash panel such that a distance between the dash panel and the rear endis increased as the rear end extends upwardly, and (c) the apertureextends to bridge the bulge and a portion of the side plate which islocated on an upper side of the bulge, the aperture is provided by atriangular-shaped aperture such that a base of the triangle is locatedalong the dash panel and such that a height of the triangle is increasedmost in an upper boundary portion of the bulge.

The third invention is, in the vehicle-pedal backward-displacementpreventing device of the second invention, characterized in that thebase of the triangle vertically extends to lie across the crest portionof the bulge and the upper boundary portion of the bulge.

The shape of the triangular-shaped aperture does not have to be definednecessarily by an accurate triangle. Rather, each of three vertexes ofthe triangle defining the aperture is preferably rounded. Further, thetriangular-shaped aperture may be defined by a somewhat deformedtriangle, which used to be a substantially accurate triangle in a statebefore formation of the bulge in a material providing each side plate(namely, which appears to be a substantially accurate triangle in anunfolded state), and which was posteriorly somewhat deformed as a resultof the formation of the bulge. Off course, the aperture can be formed tohave an accurately triangular shape in an eventual product state. In anycase, the triangular-shaped aperture does not have to be necessarilygiven an accurately triangular shape, but may be given a generallytriangular shape as long as the aperture provides an expected effect.

EFFECT OF INVENTION

In the vehicle-pedal backward-displacement preventing device asdescribed above, the aperture is provided in the region of each sideplate in which the bulge is provided, such that the strength of eachside plate is weakened most in the crest portion of the bulge.Therefore, each side plate buckles with the crest portion of the bulgebeing made to protrude outwardly in the event of bending deformation ofthe pedal bracket, thereby enabling the pedal bracket to beappropriately deformed to be bent, so as to further reliably provide theeffect of restraining backward displacement of the depressible portionof the operating pedal.

Further, in the second invention in which the aperture extends to bridgethe bulge and the above-described upper-side portion and is provided bythe triangular-shaped aperture having a base which is located along thedash panel such that the height of the triangle is increased most in theupper boundary portion of the bulge, the aperture is given a large areaso that the pedal bracket can be given a light weight, while each sideplate can be made to buckle with the crest portion of the bulge beingdisplaced reliably in the outward direction. Particularly, in the thirdinvention, since the base of the triangle defining the aperturevertically extends to lie across the crest portion of the bulge and theupper boundary portion of the bulge, the area of the aperture can befurther enlarged whereby the weight of the pedal bracket can be furtherreduced.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT INVENTION

The present invention is advantageously applied to, for example, a brakepedal of a service braking system in which an operating rod of a brakebooster is connected to a vertically intermediate portion of theoperating pedal. However, the invention is equally applicable also toother operating pedal for a vehicle such as an accelerator pedal, aclutch pedal and a brake pedal of a parking braking system.

The pair of side plates of the pedal bracket are held in substantiallyperpendicular to the dash panel, and are given such postures that permitthem to be substantially parallel with each other. The bulges aresubstantially symmetrically provided in portions of the respective sideplates which portions are substantially the same. In a space inside thebulges, there is disposed a cylindrical member such as a component ofthe brake booster which is attached to the dash panel.

The vehicle body member, which serves to deform the pedal bracketthrough the guide member, is less likely to be displaced backwardlytoward the driver's seat in the event of an impact of a large load in adirection from the vehicle front to the rear, than the dash panel. Thevehicle body member is preferably provided by an instrument panelreinforcement member (i.e., member reinforcing an instrument panel ofthe vehicle), a cowl panel or the like. The pedal bracket is deformed tobe bent according to a displacement of the dash panel relative to thevehicle body member. It is noted that the dash panel is a partition wallseparating a passenger compartment and an engine room of the vehiclefrom each other.

The guide member is provided in one of the pedal bracket and the vehiclebody member, and is slidably engaged with the other of the pedal bracketand the vehicle body member. The guide member is constructed to have aslide surface or the like, so that the upper end portion of the pedalbracket can be smoothly displaced in the downward direction, followingthe predetermined displacement path which is defined by the slidesurface or the like of the guide member. It is appropriate that thepredetermined displacement path, which is to be followed by the upperend portion of the pedal bracket, is provided by an obliquely downwardlyextending straight or curved path that reliably enables the pedalbracket to be bent as a result of the displacement of the upper endportion of the pedal bracket.

The pedal bracket and the vehicle body member may be arranged such thatthe upper end portion of the pedal bracket and the vehicle body memberare displaceable relative to each other, or alternatively, may bearranged to be connected with each other through a connecting member sothat the pedal bracket is fixedly positioned relative to the vehiclebody member. In the latter arrangement, the pedal bracket and thevehicle body member may be arranged to be disconnected from each otherso that the pedal bracket is displaced relative to the vehicle bodymember, in the event of an impact of a predetermined amount of load tothe pedal bracket in the direction from the vehicle front to the rear.The connecting member may be provided by a bolt or other breakablemember which is breakable with an impact of a predetermined amount ofload thereto, a frictional engagement member which is held in frictionalengagement with a slit or the like by a bolt tightening load and whichslips to be disengaged from the slit or the like with an impact of apredetermined amount of load thereto, or a deformable member which isdeformable with an impact of a predetermined amount of load thereto soas to permit displacement of the upper end portion of the pedal bracketrelative to the vehicle body.

The aperture is formed to be located in the region of each side plate inwhich at least the crest portion of the bulge is included. However, thespecific position, shape and size of the aperture are suitablydetermined on the basis of the shapes of the pair of side plates of thepedal bracket and the direction of the load acting on the pedal bracket.That is, they are determined through simulation, experiment or the like,such that the strength of each side plate is reduced most in the crestportion of the bulge whereby each side plate can be made to buckle withthe crest portion protruding outwardly.

BRIEF EXPLANATION OF DRAWINGS

[FIG. 1 (a)] A side view of an outline of construction of a brake pedalapparatus to which the present invention is applied, and showing a usualstate of the apparatus.

[FIG. 1 (b)] A side view of the outline of construction of the brakepedal apparatus to which the present invention is applied, and showingan operating state of a pedal backward-displacement preventing device.

[FIG. 2 (a)] A vertical cross sectional view showing in enlargement apedal bracket of the embodiment of FIGS. 1 (a) and (b).

[FIG. 2 (b)] A front view showing in enlargement the pedal bracket ofthe embodiment of FIGS. 1 (a) and (b).

[FIG. 3 (a)] A vertical cross sectional view corresponding to FIG. 2(a), and explaining a conventional pedal bracket.

[FIG. 3 (b)] A front view corresponding to FIG. 2 (b), and explainingthe conventional pedal bracket.

EMBODIMENT

There will be described in detail an embodiment of the presentinvention, with reference to the drawings.

FIGS. 1 (a) and 1 (b) are schematic views showing a brake pedalapparatus 10 which is to be used for a service braking system of avehicle and to which the present invention is applied. FIG. 1 (a)indicates a usual state of the apparatus 10, while FIG. 1 (b) indicatesan operating state of a pedal backward-displacement preventing device.Each of FIGS. 1 (a) and 1 (b) is a side view of the apparatus 10 as seenfrom the left side of the apparatus 10. This brake pedal apparatus 10 isprovided with a pedal bracket 14 which is fixedly attached through abolt or the like (not shown) to a dash panel 12 which separates apassenger compartment and an engine room of the vehicle from each other,a support shaft 16 which is disposed in an upper portion of the pedalbracket 14 so as to extend substantially in a horizontal direction andsubstantially in parallel with a transversal direction of the vehicle,and an operating pedal 18 which is disposed pivotably about an axis ofthe support shaft 16. The operating pedal 18 is pivotably attached atits upper end portion to the support shaft 16. When a depressibleportion 20 provided by a lower end portion of the operating pedal 18 isdepressed in a forward direction (i.e., the leftward direction as seenin FIGS. 1 (a) and 1 (b)), an operating rod 26 of a brake booster 24 isforwardly pressed through a connecting pin 22 which connects theoperating rod 26 to a vertically intermediate portion of the operatingpedal 18, so that the operating pedal 18 causes the brake booster 24 togenerate a braking force. The brake booster 24 is fixedly attached tothe dash panel 12, and is integrally provided with a cylindrical portion28 which is provided by, for example, a bellows. The cylindrical portion28 of the brake booster 24 protrudes into the passenger compartment, sothat the operating rod 26 extends through the cylindrical portion 28.

FIGS. 2 (a) and 2 (b) are views showing the above-described pedalbracket 14 in enlargement, and corresponding to FIGS. 3 (a) and (b),respectively. FIG. 2 (a) is a vertical cross sectional view of the pedalbracket 14, while FIG. 2 (b) is a front view of the pedal bracket 14.The pedal bracket 14 includes a back plate 34 and a pair of mutuallyopposed side plates 30, 32 which are substantially parallel with eachother and which are connected to each other through the back plate 34.Thus, the pedal bracket 14 has a U-shaped cross sectional shape as awhole. The side plates 30, 32 are given such postures that permit themto be substantially perpendicular to the dash panel 12, and arepositioned in the respective right and left sides of the cylindricalportion 28 of the brake booster 24. The side plates 30, 32 extendupwardly, and have respective bulges 30 a, 32 a provided in theirrespective lower portions. The bulges 30 a, 32 a protrude to be curvedsubstantially symmetrically in respective rightward and leftwarddirections along an outer periphery of the cylindrical portion 28, suchthat the side plates 30, 32 do not interfere with the cylindricalportion 28. The pedal bracket 14 is fixedly attached at front ends ofthe respective bulges 30 a, 32 a (at left ends of the respective bulges30 a, 32 a as seen FIG. 2 (a)), to the dash panel 12 through bolts orthe like (not shown). Each of the side plates 30, 32 has a substantiallyconstant width, and is inclined toward the rear of the vehicle so that adistance between each side plate 30, 32 and the dash panel 12 isincreased as the side plates 30, 32 extend upwardly. In upper portionsof the respective side plates 30, 32, the above-described support shaft16 is provided to connect the side plates 30, 32.

A connecting member 36 is fixedly provided in an upper end portion ofthe pedal bracket 14, and is connected through a bolt 42 to a supportmember 40 which is fixedly attached to an instrument panel reinforcementmember 38 as a vehicle body member, as shown in FIG. 1. The bolt 42 isintroduced in a slit which is formed in the connecting member 36, and isheld in frictional engagement, by a screw tightening, with portions ofthe connecting member 36 which are located on opposite sides of theslit, whereby the pedal bracket 14 is connected to the support member40. When a predetermined amount of disengaging force is applied to thepedal bracket 14 in a direction from the vehicle front to the rear,i.e., in the rightward direction as seen in FIGS. 1 (a) and 1 (b), theconnecting member 36 is made to slip to cause the bolt 42 to bedisengaged from the above-described portions of the connecting member 36which are located on the opposite sides of the slit, whereby the bolt 42is removed from the connecting member 36. The pedal bracket 14 and thesupport member 40 are thus disconnected from each other, as shown inFIG. 1 (b).

The above-described predetermined amount of disengaging forcecorresponds to such an amount that allows the upper end portion of thepedal bracket 14 to be removed from the support member 40, forpreventing the depressible portion 20 of the operating pedal 18 frombeing displaced toward a driver's seat of the vehicle, in the event ofdisplacement of the dash panel 12 toward the driver's seat whichdisplacement is caused, for example, due to application of a large loadthereto in the direction from the vehicle front to the rear. Two kindsof guide members 44, 46 are provided in fixedly provided in the supportmember 40. Each of the guide members 44, 46 is smoothly inclined in theobliquely downward direction as the guide members 44, 46 extend towardthe rear of the vehicle, i.e., toward the driver's seat. When the pedalbracket 14 is disconnected from the support member 40 and is furtherdisplaced together with the dash panel 12 toward the driver's seat, thepedal bracket 14 is brought into slidable engagement at its upper endportion with a slide surface (lower surface) of the guide member 44. Thepedal bracket 14 is then guided by the guide member 44 so as to besmoothly displaced in the obliquely downward direction. The instrumentpanel reinforcement member 38 which is provided with the support member40 is less likely to be displaced toward the rear of the vehicle in theevent of an impact of a large load in the direction from the vehiclefront to the rear, than the dash panel 12. Owing to the displacement ofthe dash panel 12 and the instrument panel reinforcement member 38relative to each other, the upper end portion of the pedal bracket 14 isremoved from the support member 40, and is then guided by the guidemember 44 so as to be smoothly displaced in the obliquely downwarddirection. The guide member 46 is integrally provided in the supportmember 44, and serves to position the pedal bracket 14, for preventingthe pedal bracket 14 from being deviated from the slide surface of theguide member 44 to any one of opposite sides of the slide surface, evenin presence of a load acting on the pedal bracket 14 in an obliquedirection.

In a crest portion of each of the bulges 30 a, 32 a of the respectiveside plates 30, 32, there is located a weakest portion Q at which astrength against a load F (exerted by the guide member 44 when the upperend portion of the pedal bracket 14 is displaced in the oblique downwarddirection) is weakened most. The side plates 30, 32 have respectiveapertures 48, 50 each of which is located in a region of a correspondingone of the side plates 30, 32 which region includes the crest portion ofa corresponding one of the bulges 30 a, 32 a, such that each of the sideplates 30, 32 can buckle with the crest portion being made to protrudeoutwardly, as indicated by broken line in FIG. 2 (b). The position andshape of each of the apertures 48, 50 are suitably determined on thebasis of the shapes of the pair of side plates 30, 32 of the pedalbracket 14 and the direction of the load F acting on the pedal bracket14. That is, they are determined through simulation, experiment or thelike, such that each of the side plates 30, 32 can buckle with the crestportion being made to protrude outwardly. In the present embodiment,each of the apertures 48, 50 extends to bridge the bulge and a portionof the corresponding side plate 30, 32 which portion is located on anupper side of the bulge, and has a triangular shape. Thetriangular-shaped apertures 48, 50 have respective bases 48 a, 50 awhich are substantially parallel with the dash panel 12. Vertexes of atriangle defining each of the apertures 48, 50 are given smooth arcuateshapes. Each of the bases 48 a, 50 a vertically extends to lie astridethe crest portion and an upper boundary portion 30 b, 32 b of the bulge30 a, 32 a of the side plate 30, 32. A top of the triangle opposite tothe base 48 a, 50 a is positioned in the upper boundary portion 30 b, 32b. In other words, a height of the triangle as measured from the base 48a, 50 a is increased most in the upper boundary portion 30 b, 32 b.Described more specifically, the top of the triangle is positioned,namely, the height of the triangle is increased most in a position whichis slightly lower than a center of the upper boundary portion 30 b, 32b. A lower one 48 b, 50 b of two sides adjacent to the base 48 a, 50 ais inclined so as to be substantially parallel to a rear end of the sideplate 30, 32 as viewed in a vehicle running direction, namely, so as tobe substantially parallel to a right end of the side plate 30, 32 asseen in FIGS. 1 (a) and 2 (a).

As is apparent from FIG. 2 (a), each of the above-described apertures48, 50 is given a triangular shape as seen in a side view of the pedalbracket 14, in an eventual product state in which the bulge 30 a, 32 ahas been formed in the side plate 30, 32 by a pressing operation. Sinceeach of the bulges 30 a, 32 a is made to protrude by a small amount, thetriangle shape shown in FIG. 2 (a) is substantially the same as atriangle shape of each aperture 48, 50 in a state before the pressingoperation.

With the pair of side plates 30, 32 being made to buckle in the vicinityof the bulges 30 a, 32 a, the pedal bracket 14 as a whole is deformed tobe bent at its portion corresponding to the bulges 30 a, 32 a so as toappear to make a bow. As a result of the bending deformation of thepedal bracket 14, the operating pedal 18 connected at its upper endportion to the support shaft 16 is clockwise pivoted (as seen in FIGS. 1(a) and 1 (b)) about a fulcrum in the form of the intermediate portionof the operating pedal 18 at which the operating pedal 18 is connected(through the connecting pin 22). With the operating pedal 18 beingclockwise pivoted about its intermediate portion, the depressibleportion 20 of the operating pedal 18 is relatively displaced in adirection toward the front of the vehicle (i.e., in the leftwarddirection as seen FIG. 1 (b)). Thus, the depressible portion 20 isrestrained from being backwardly displaced toward the driver's seat.That is, as a result of the bending deformation of the pedal bracket 14,the depressible portion 20 of the operating pedal 18 is displaced towardthe front of the vehicle, as indicated by solid line in FIG. 1 (b). Itis noted that one-dot chain line of FIG. 1 (b) indicates a posture ofthe operating pedal 18 in a case where the depressible portion 20 of theoperating pedal 18 is displaced backwardly without the pedal bracket 14being deformed. In the present embodiment, the pedalbackward-displacement preventing device is constructed to include theconnecting member 36, the bolt 42, the guide member 44 and the apertures48, 50.

In the present embodiment, each of the apertures 49, 50 is provided inthe region of a corresponding one of the side plates 30, 32 in whichregion a corresponding one of the bulges 30 a, 32 a is provided, suchthat the strength of the side plate 30, 32 is weakened most (against theload F) in the crest portion of the bulge 30 a, 32 a. Therefore, eachside plate 30, 32 buckles with the crest portion of the bulge 30 a, 32 abeing made to protrude outwardly, as a result of the bending deformationof the pedal bracket 14 caused by the load F which is generated due tothe displacement of the dash panel 12 toward the driver's seat in theevent of an impact of a large load in the direction from the vehiclefront to the rear. In this instance, since the crest portions of therespective bulges 30 a, 32 a are thus made to buckle to protrudeoutwardly, the side plates 30, 32 are unlikely to interfere with thecylindrical portion 28 of the brake booster 24 which is located insidethe bulges 30 a, 32 a of the side plates 30, 32. Even if the side plates30, 32 interfere with the cylindrical portion 28, the buckle deformationof the pedal bracket 14 is less likely to be impeded than where the sideplates are bent with the upper boundary portions 30 b, 32 b of therespective bulges being made to protrude inwardly. It is thereforepossible to constantly enable the pedal bracket 14 to be appropriatelydeformed to be bent, thereby further reliably providing the effect ofrestraining backward displacement of the depressible portion 20 of theoperating pedal 18.

Further, in the present embodiment, each aperture 48, 50 extends tobridge the bulge 30 a, 32 a and a portion of the side plate 30, 32 whichportion is located on an upper side of the bulge 30 a, 32 a, while beingprovided by the triangular-shaped aperture. Each triangular-shapedaperture 48, 50 has the base 48 a, 50 a which is substantially parallelwith the dash panel 12, and the lower side 48 b, 50 b which issubstantially parallel with the rear end of the side plate 30, 32. Theheight of the triangle defining the aperture 48, 50 is increased most inthe upper boundary portion 30 b, 32 b of the bulge 30 a, 32 a, so thatthe side plate 30, 32 can be made to buckle with the crest portion ofthe bulge 30 a, 32 a being displaced reliably in the outward direction,while the aperture 48, 50 is given such a large area that the pedalbracket 14 can be given a light weight. Particularly, since the base 48a, 50 a of the triangle defining the aperture 48, 50 vertically extendsto lie across the crest portion of the bulge 30 a, 32 a and the upperboundary portion 30 b, 32 b of the bulge 30 a, 32 a, the area of theaperture 48, 50 can be further enlarged whereby the weight of the pedalbracket 14 can be further reduced.

The embodiment of the present invention has been explained in detailwith reference to the drawings. However, the explained embodiment ismerely an embodied form, and the present invention can be embodied withvarious modifications and improvements on the basis of knowledge ofthose skilled in the art.

1. A vehicle-pedal backward-displacement preventing device for a vehiclehaving a driver's seat, a vehicle body member, and a dash panel, whichis displaceable relative to the vehicle body member in the event ofbackward displacement of the dash panel toward the driver's seat, saiddevice comprising: a pedal bracket having a pair of mutually opposedside plates each including (i) a front end at which said pedal bracketis attached to the dash panel and (ii) a bulge which protrudes in aprotruding direction away from the other of said plates; an operatingpedal disposed pivotably about an axis of a support shaft connectingsaid side plates, and having a depressible portion which is provided bya lower end portion thereof to be depressed; and a guide member disposedin relation to an upper end portion of said pedal bracket and thevehicle body member, and restraining said depressible portion of saidoperating pedal from being backwardly displaced toward the driver'sseat, upon backward displacement of said pedal bracket together with thedash panel toward the driver's seat; wherein said guide member isconfigured to cause said upper end portion of said pedal bracket to bedownwardly displaced following a predetermined displacement path, upondisplacement of said pedal bracket relative to the vehicle body member,and causes said pedal bracket to be deformed with said side plates beingmade to buckle; and wherein each of said side plates has an aperturelocated in a region thereof which includes a crest portion of saidbulge, such that a strength of each of said side plates against a load,which is exerted by said guide member upon the backward displacement ofthe dash panel, is made smaller in said crest portion than in the otherportion of each of said side plates, so that each of said side platescan be made to buckle with said crest portion of said bulge beingdisplaced in said protruding direction.
 2. Thevehicle-pedal-backward-displacement preventing device according to claim1: wherein said operating pedal is a brake pedal connected to anoperating rod of a brake booster which is disposed on the dash panel;wherein said side plates are disposed on opposite sides of the brakebooster; wherein said bulge is located in a respective lower portion ofeach of said side plates, and protrudes in said protruding direction soas to prevent interference of said side plates with the brake booster;wherein said bulge has a front end which is attached to the dash panel,and a rear end which is inclined with respect to the dash panel to bespaced away from the dash panel as the rear end extends upwardly;wherein said aperture extends to bridge said bulge and a portion of acorresponding one of said side plates which is located on an upper sideof said bulge; and wherein said aperture is defined by a triangle suchthat a base of said triangle extends along the dash panel and such thatsaid triangle peaks in an upper boundary portion of said bulge.
 3. Thevehicle-pedal-backward-displacement preventing device according to claim2; wherein said bulge of one of said side plates and said bulge of theother of said side plates are located on opposite sides of a cylindricalportion of the brake booster through which the operating rod extends;and wherein said bulge of each of said side plates is curved along anouter periphery of the cylindrical portion of the brake booster, so asto protrude in said protruding direction.
 4. Thevehicle-pedal-backward-displacement preventing device according to claim2, wherein said base of said triangle defining said aperture extendsvertically to lie across said crest portion and said upper boundaryportion of said bulge.
 5. The vehicle-pedal-backward-displacementpreventing device according to claim 1, wherein said guide member isrelated to an instrument panel reinforcement member of the vehicle asthe vehicle body member.
 6. The vehicle-pedal-backward-displacementpreventing device according to claim 1, further comprising a connectingmember connecting said pedal bracket and a support member which is fixedto the vehicle body member; wherein said connecting member is fixed tosaid upper end portion of said pedal bracket, and is slidably engagedwith said support member; and wherein said connecting member isdisengageable from said support member, upon the backward displacementof said pedal bracket toward the driver's seat.
 7. Thevehicle-pedal-backward-displacement preventing device according to claim6; wherein said guide member is provided by a portion of said supportmember, and has a slide surface which defines said predetermineddisplacement path; and wherein said slide surface of said guide memberis inclined such that a height thereof is reduced as viewed in adirection away from a front of the vehicle toward a rear of the vehicle.8. The vehicle-pedal-backward-displacement preventing device accordingto claim 7, wherein said operating pedal is a brake pedal connected atan intermediate portion thereof to an operating rod of a brake boosterwhich is disposed on the dash panel, such that said brake pedal ispivotable about said intermediate portion thereof, in such a directionthat causes said depressible portion thereof to be displaced toward thefront of the vehicle relative to said intermediate portion, upondisplacement of said upper end portion of said pedal bracket followingsaid predetermined displacement path which is defined by said slidesurface of said guide member.